Robert Mondavi Winery The Reserve To Kalon Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 2018

The 2018 vintage provided ideal weather conditions for an excellent fruit set, with slow, even ripening for the perfect
balance of freshnessand maximum flavor development. The beautiful fruit for The Reserve was hand-harvested between September 26 and October 26 before aging in French oak barrels (100% first use). The final blend was assembled through repeated tasting trials over 21 months of barrel aging.

The grapes were hand-harvested in the cool of the morning, then gently destemmed and crushed. The wine was fermented in French oak tanks for soft, supple tannins, and then stainless steel tanks for purity of fruit expression. Twenty-four days of maceration maximized color and flavor extraction and polished the tannins for a lush, round mouthfeel. The new wine was transferred to 60-gallon French oak barrels (19% new) for malolactic fermentation and 16 months of aging to develop greater roundness and depth. Small percentages of complementary varieties were included in the blend to enhance the wine’s structure, balance, and complex flavor profile. The wine was bottled in April 2020.

To Kalon Vineyard is situated on prime benchland in west Oakville. The well-drained soils combine with ideal sun exposure to yield rich, complex flavors and flawless fruit maturity. The Reserve is blended from the finest blocks, meticulously crafted by keeping each block or sub-block separate through fermentation and aging (100% To Kalon Vineyard).

97 Points. — Jeb Dunnuck